Coming Soon!
Melitta North America Launches Signature Series
Pour-Over™ for the Perfect Cup of Coffee

Melitta North America, a household name in exceptional coffee preparation, today announced the launch of its Signature Series Pour-Over™ coffeemakers designed for customers in pursuit of a better cup of coffee, in the comfort of their own home. This new line of pour-over coffeemakers gives coffee lovers the at-home handcrafted coffee experience.

“As the inventor of the original Pour-Over™, Melitta North America is excited to introduce this new line of Pour-Over™ coffeemakers to coffee lovers throughout North America,” said Chris Hillman, VP of Marketing. “More than a century of research and development have culminated in our Signature Series Pour-Over™ line which combines function and design to deliver brewing simplicity—and, of course, a better cup of coffee.”

Melitta Bentz, the brand’s innovative founder, revolutionized the world of coffee in 1908 when she took a brass pot from her kitchen, punched holes in it and used a piece of paper from her son’s notebook to create the very first Pour-Over™—the precursor to the modern day Pour-Over™.

“It’s Melitta Bentz’ legacy that we’re building on,” said Hillman. “Her iconic Pour-Over concept still gives our customers the simplest way to enjoy handcrafted coffee at home, eliminating the guesswork and minimizing the cleanup. Our Signature Series Pour-Over™ is the best option for customers looking for flavorful, gourmet brewing at home without bitterness or mess.”

The Signature Series Pour-Over™ brews a single cup of handcrafted coffee in three simple, efficient steps:

1. Place the Melitta Pour-Over™ cone on top of your favorite mug and insert Melitta paper filter.

2. Scoop in your favorite fresh ground coffee to taste.

3. Pour hot water (just off the boil) into the cone, fully saturating all the grounds.

Then, just sip, smile and enjoy the pure flavor of handcrafted coffee.

Delivering on consumers' changing needs, NESTEA® recently unveiled its new brand proposition, hitting retail shelves in the U.S. starting last month. The reinvention is aimed at enhancing the position of NESTEA in the rapidly expanding, $4.5 billion ready-to-drink tea category.

The new NESTEA, which includes completely new reformulations and a premium product line, is the first major overhaul of the iconic tea brand's visual identity, packaging and product line in many years, and it embodies the simplicity and delicious tasting refreshment that today's consumers demand.

From the flavors to the ingredients, the bottle and the branding, the new NESTEA was 100% shaped from consumer research. NESTEA listened to thousands of consumers at every stage of development to understand what they are looking for in the beverage aisle. The findings were clear: consumers demand an authentic tea experience – without sacrificing taste – and the new NESTEA delivers with a reformulated, fruit flavor range and four new, premium real-brewed teas.

"With a 70-year heritage and 84% consumer awareness, NESTEA is among the most well-known beverages in the drink case today. Yet, that is not enough," said Cassin Chaisson, Tea Marketing Director, Nestlé Waters North America. "As consumers increasingly embrace simplicity and great taste in their beverages, we are committed to providing the finest ready-to-drink tea options on the market."

"The consumer is at the heart of the new NESTEA," Chaisson continued. "The thousands we surveyed helped draw the reinvention blueprint for our new look, new bottles, the reformulation of our fruit-flavored line and the introduction of our real-brewed range."

The new NESTEA fruit-flavored teas contain no high fructose corn syrup and have no artificial colors or flavors and no GMO ingredients. They are made with real sugar and stevia extract. Moreover, NESTEA's new range of real-brewed teas is made with up to five ingredients (water, sugar, tea, rooibos and citric acid). New NESTEA sources its tea leaves from Nilgiri, India, a region known for producing high-quality tea. To showcase the product, the new NESTEA will have a contemporized, transparent bottle with a wider mouth and easier grippability.

The new fruit-flavored NESTEA product line comes in 6-packs and 23-ounce single bottles in Lemon, Peach, and Raspberry flavors.

In Cuba, coffee is a daily part of the relaxed island culture, where a hot cup is celebrated as a way to bring friends together, whether it is catching up on the day's news over a "cafecito" at a street café or exchanging gossip over a pot of strong brew at home. And in Miami, where the largest numbers of Cuban expats now live, 3:05 pm has become the city's official "cafecito" time, recognizing the power of Cuban coffee culture in bringing together the city's diverse community.

In appreciation of this opportunity to slow down and reconnect in today's fast-paced lifestyle, The California Milk Processor Board, creators of the iconic got milk? campaign, is introducing three Cuban-coffee inspired recipes to make at home and enjoy with a friend or two.

"Here in California, we've become accustomed to a grab and go lifestyle," said social media influencer Eddie Zamora, creator of the Yum Yum Foodie brand and developer of the recipes. "Growing up in a Cuban household a large pot of coffee kept warm on the stove was the centerpiece of many social gatherings and long conversations. Coffee has the power to connect people from all over, from Miami to California, because it sparks conversation, friendship, and with these recipes, even excitement."

Eddie's recipes include the "Euro-Cuban," a delicious blend featuring Nutella and whole milk with a touch of salt; the "Neighborhood Gossip" blending rich espresso and whole milk with dark rum for an adult offering served in a martini glass; and a Cuban Hot Chocolate, a treat perfect for kids with dark chocolate, wholesome milk, ground cinnamon and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Adding milk to coffee enhances the "mouth feel" as the fats in milk change the texture, making it thicker and adding smoothness. To view the recipes created exclusively for got milk?/ Toma Leche and a fun instructional video featuring Eddie Zamora, visit: www.gotmilk.com, www.tomaleche.com and follow got milk? via social media on Facebook/ Twitter @gotmilk and Instagram @officialgotmilk.

Collecting teapots can be a very satisfying hobby that will take you across many eras of history, through many different designs and shapes. While no single article could ever hope to cover the breadth of what is involved in collecting an item, this article provides you with a brief overview of the things to consider when you want to get started in collecting teapots, so that you can begin your collection in an informed and directed way.

Get inspiration. Before you start collecting, it is important to know what you like about teapots. Check out collections and styles of teapots held or owned by other people that you know and try to see some exhibitions if possible. Here are some good resources to get your research started:

• Museums - especially museums concerned with design, with household items, with the way people used to live. Look out for teapot exhibitions, which are held regularly in different parts of the world. Even if you can't make one in another country, you might be able to browse some of the collection online through the museum or exhibitor's site.

• Books and magazines - look in antique and collectibles resources in the library, ditto for magazines.

• Antique and collectibles stores - browse around; you will be amazed at what you will find; and don't forget opportunity shops (charity stores) either - they will often have teapots.

• Friends and family - look at the items kept by people you know. Ask them questions about where they bought the teapot, why they bought it, how they feel about it, etc. It all goes towards informing you about how you will approach collecting teapots.

Decide on how you will collect teapots. There are many different ways to collect, based on interest, budget, availability, etc. You will need to consider how to define and limit your collection so that it is doable, affordable and fits in with your lifestyle (space!). Here are some considerations to take into account:

Historical teapots - Do you like teapots belong to a particular era in history? Do you only like modern teapots? Or old teapots? There are many, many possibilities here. For example, you might be fond of Victorian era silver teapots or Art Deco ceramic teapots. This will be something that your prior research will help you to decide.

Style - Do you prefer a particular style of teapot? Are you looking for teapots that will match existing decor or themes in your home?

Country of origin - Do you only want to collect Japanese or Chinese teapots? Or Early Colonial teapots from the southern hemisphere?

Design - Perhaps you only want teapots with animal motifs, or spots, or stripes? This type of collecting is known as "novelty" teapot collecting. Collecting in this manner can narrow down the options but it can be a huge source of fun and enjoyment at the same time!

Tea company designs - Sometimes tea companies sell their own brand teapots and this can be a collectible theme of its very own.

Eclectic - There is nothing preventing you from collecting teapots in an "anything goes" fashion either, collect it just because you like it! This is probably the easiest and most budget-adjustable approach to collecting teapots because you can be very flexible in your additions. An eclectic collection can be just as valuable and interesting as a themed one, provided that you take good care of the teapots and choose quality to begin with (see below about spotting problems).

Consider affordability and availability. These are two key elements of a successful collection. If it will be difficult to source a teapot, or expensive, you might want to consider alternative ways of branching out in your teapot collection. It might be a case of having one expensive centerpiece and a cheaper supporting cast of pretty but budget-conscious teapots.

Learn as much as you can about marks and designs so that you can avoid buying fakes. When you get really serious about collecting, it's likely that you'll start looking for more expensive and rarer items to add to your collection and that you will focus on particular makes.

A good way of doing this is to attend local auctions or to search online auctions for sales. However, it is important that you are familiar with the marks and signs of the manufacturer so that you avoid making costly mistakes and bringing home a fake. Take the time to borrow books on the topic and learn the marks and design signatures that confirm the authenticity of your teapots.

Avoid buying teapots in poor condition unless you have a really good reason for doing so. It is important to add only quality to your collection, or it won't carry value (beyond sentimental) into the future. Things to be extra careful of when examining teapots include:

Cracks, including fine hairline cracks that are difficult to see, and glued-back sections. Look closely at the lid and spout for the most likely break lines.

Chips

Missing parts (such as the lid, a handle, etc.).

Broaden your collection. If you have the space and the interest, you might consider teacups, tea trays, tea kettles, sugar bowls, milk jugs, tea towels featuring teapots, fabric with teapot prints, etc., as part of an overall collection. While this will increase the cost and the usage of space, it can be a very rewarding dimension to your collecting hobby that can also be put to good use during tea parties.

Most of us like to think we’re doing the right thing with the empty cup, and throw it into the bin marked “recycling,” but it has recently been revealed that only 1 in 400 coffee cups are recycled because they are made of a difficult-to-recycle mix of paper and plastic.

The problem is that “paper” cups are not actually simply made of paper but include a layer of polyethylene. This means they cannot simply be recycled with paper or cardboard and end up in landfill sites for decades.

If we collected all the billions of paper cups that end up in landfill sites every year in the US and compared them against the height of the Space Needle in Seattle (home to Starbucks), this is what it might look like…

Get ready to kick-off summer with a spectacular tasting of iced beverages at the Brooklyn Expo as Starfish Junction Productions, producer of the popular winter Coffee & Tea Festival, gets ready to refresh coffee and tea lovers at the first Coffee & Tea Festival NYC Iced.

This festival of iced beverages focusing on coffee and tea will be held on Sunday, June 11, 2017 at the Brooklyn Expo Center in Greenpoint. This event will provide attendees the opportunity to taste best-selling, hand crafted, products from local, national and international exhibitors. Information can be found at: CoffeeAndTeaFestival.com/NYCIced.

The Coffee & Tea Festival NYC Iced is modeled after the successful Coffee & Tea Festival series of events which have been running annually since 2006. "The Coffee & Tea Festival has been a wonderful celebration of everything related to coffee and tea, but with approximately 85% of the tea consumed in America being iced this event is a natural expansion of what we do; it only makes sense to give consumers an event that focuses specifically on what they love and introduces them to the expansive world of iced tea and coffee,” explained event manager Kristyn Dolan.

Like the hot version of the Coffee & Tea Festival which attracts thousands of attendees each year, this event will feature a varied line-up of exhibitors—both local and national—providing tastings of their best products, seminars for attendees to learn more about their favorite beverages, and products available for purchase. Tickets, which include product tasting can be purchased online for $20 at the festival website: CoffeeAndTeaFestival.com/NYCIced . Attendees are encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance to avoid a sell-out. A limited number of tickets will be sold. For tickets and information, visit www.CoffeeAndTeaFestival.com/NYCIced